Hi all,
I used to frequent this forum a bit around 2014-2017. I suffered three concussions in the summer/fall of 2014 and dealt with PCS and setbacks for over two years after that. Thankfully, since that point, I've been able to live a 100% normal life outside of not drinking or playing contact sports. However, last night I was driving and I hydroplaned into a curb going about 40mph. That's not a huge speed, but it was enough to bend/crack my hub caps and whipped/rotated my head forward pretty violently. I'm thankful that the damage to myself and my car wasn't worse, and luckily by head didn't hit the steering wheel or wall or anything, but I've been feeling PCS symptoms for the first time in about 4 years or so. I woke up today extremely dizzy, nauseous, and with light sensitivity, and although I'm trying to work like normal I feel like I'm having trouble focusing and completing my thoughts.

I know that the "could this have caused a concussion" questions are super common here and are usually meaningless, because focusing on your symptoms is more important than ruminating over the event that may have caused damage. But I'm wondering in this case if you all think it's likely that this event warrants a proactive approach (not working, not using electronics, dark room, all that), or if I should keep living my normal life.

It's ironic. The thing that caused many of my PCS issues (like ignoring my concussion symptoms and continuing to play sports and going to school like normal) ended up also being the thing that helped me overcome PCS anxiety (I had to train myself to keep going through the anxiety and not let a 0.1 G bump turn into a week long anxiety issue). But in this case, it was a much larger amount of force, but still probably not something someone who'd never had a concussion before would think about. So I'm not sure what side to err on.

I think more of a soft tissue whiplash type of flare up..

Whiplash Injury: Causes, Symptoms, Treatments, and More
Whiplash Treatments and Recovery

Neck strain, whiplash, not head/brain/concussion.

It’s been about 36 hours since the injury and I’m thinking it’s a neck issue as well since I haven’t experienced any headaches or screen sensitivity, which I did with my previous concussions. I’m mainly dealing with vestibular and psychological issues